Written by: Eduardo Estrada Borga
Come April and with it the filing of the Annual Declaration for Natural Persons, many taxpayers expect the SAT to return some of the amount remaining in favor of the Income Tax (ISR).
For taxpayers who already have some degree of financial literacy, the annual declaration represents the effort they have made, during the immediate preceding year, to collect bills representing authorized deductions (medical fees, mortgage interest, school fees, among others), which from likely to generate the balance in favor of the ISR.
On the other hand, for people who don’t have much experience with Mexican taxation, and that April will be their first contact with the SAT, it’s worth remembering that making the annual declaration is a financial commitment to employees, what or what:
- You have other income in addition to wages and salaries (rent, fees, dividends, etc.)
- Notify the employer that they will submit their annual declaration
- When they stop working before December 31
- When they had two employers at the same time
- When they get income that comes from abroad
- When your income is more than $400,000
Over the years, submitting an annual declaration has become a simpler and more doable task (which does not mean that an accountant is no longer needed), as the SAT uses its databases to make taxpayer applications available with preloaded information regarding income, deductions, and taxes paid over the course of general.
number Stop reading too: ABC must submit your 2022 annual statement prior to the SAT
Like everything in this life, there are unattainable things that complicate this task, because from the very beginning, if the taxpayer did not have a so-called electronic signature, they could not send their return; On the other hand, if they do not have a suitable computer that allows access to the SAT page application, they cannot provide the reference statement either; Finally, if the information has any inconsistency, the procedure can be refused.
The above can be more complicated if the taxpayer needs help from the SAT since access to the authority’s offices is restricted due to the pandemic, and they provide attention primarily to appointments that are nearly impossible to obtain.
It must be understood that part of the job of SAT officials evaluating refunds is to look for discrepancies so that taxpayers will not return funds that properly match or return less than they originally requested.
In this order of thoughts, while it is true that in order to proceed with an order the requirements set out in tax laws must be fully complied with, it is also true that today’s SAT holds back returns without a legal basis. Of course (which leaves taxpayers without protection, who, due to ignorance or other situations, do not defend their rights and do not get back the money that is rightly suited to them).
But why does the SAT do this? The answer is not simple, since it has many shadows and edges, because unfortunately the group today is not necessarily the best, public spending continues to grow and fulfillment of economic obligations is a priority.
It is clear that by day by day increasing public spending (considering that the work of government cannot be stopped) and inflation affecting us all equally, the budget allotted by the Ministry of Finance and public credit for recovery is severely affected, since it is of paramount importance to pay Salaries of public servants, concern for the health problems of Mexican society and, in general, concern in some way with all the demands that exist in the country.
This is where the SAT has a major problem, since it has a limited budget for refunds and many taxpayers have the right to redeem the credits for the ISR they would have generated. Hence the big dilemma: to return or not to return.
Did you miss that text that you only find in Money+? He entered “sugar daddy” or “sugar mommy” and SAT
Solving the dilemma is not easy, the return is the simplest, but what will happen when the budget runs out? How do they tell the taxpayer that he cannot exercise his rights and get his money back? How will they support the refusal to return?
Undoubtedly, the answers to these questions are not at all simple, and it is clear that they will displease the section of society which is not in favor of tax refunds.
* Eduardo Estrada Borja is a Certified Public Accountant, Master of Finance and Management, Member of the Tax Audit Committee of the Association of Public Accountants of Mexico, has developed his professional practice in offices dedicated to providing tax advice, in the Department of Tax Administration and currently leads the financial management of a multinational company.
The opinions expressed are the sole responsibility of their authors and are completely independent of the position and editorial line of Forbes Mexico.